Forum:Help with a College Project:
Hi! My name is Luke Higgins and I am currently focusing on Bioshock for my end of year project at college, my project is based around a non-cannon part of Rapture called Undertow and its rediscovery after around twenty years of falling into the ocean trench. I am currently writing a document to justify how Undertow would exist within the cannon of the game and I am having trouble with the vast amont of information that I have to take in. I urgently need help in trying to connect Undertow to the story of the game so that it fits well without there being any plot holes. Here is some basic information: Underow was built in 1943 as a precursor to the City of Rapture, it's purpose was to experiment with the possibility of living under the ocean. The project was the brainchild of Martin Mcchain who was born into the thrall of the First World War and had ultimately came to see the human race as a savage species with no redeeming qualities. He thus built Undertow to be an escape from the surface and partered with Andrew Ryan who had started thinking about Rapture ten years before he bagan construction. Undertow's community is based on a fusion of Objectivism and Altruism called Altrujectivism, the idea was to allow greater freedom to the people while things like the Market and the Press were controlled by Martins Company as a means to prevent competition and lies being spread through the community. Many part of the district were owned by the comapy while a few other buildings were privatly owned for the express purpose of living facilities. Undertow sent data back to Ryan as per the agreement and ten years later Ryan bagan construction on Rapture. Undertows location is near the outskirts of Rapture and the district is perched on a small opening overlooking the ocean trench that Persephonie also overlooks. In 1951 Martin realised that he had lost control of his people of whome had become manipluated by his own company and thus he held a vote against their knowledge in the district to see weather the people wanted to become a part of Rapture or stay independent. The two part of the city had seperated prior becuase of a conflict of community. In the end they decided to join Rapture but before anything could be done the cliff that the district was perched on broke off causing the district to fall into the trench. It was rediscoverd just after the events of Bioshock 2 when Persephonie crashed into what was left of the district that had become wedged between two cliff faces. I am still writing the basic details and will publish it on this site once it is done, I really need help by those who are more well versed in the lore than I am to help me get things right. :Hi, first of all welcome on the wiki! Just don't forget to sign your posts on form and talk pages with "~~~~" :It seems like no easy project to think of, though the idea of a colony before Rapture is interesting. An underwater lab to study the geological constitution of Rapture's region is actually more likely for prolonged studies than simply sending deep sea divers to recover specimens, but only as long as the colony can remain autonomous. For that, think food and air supplies from gardens like in Arcadia, but also a way to generate power which does not necessitate a geothermal plant, for example exploiting deep sea currents, or perhaps through thermal energy conversion, but I don't know much about either. That aside, it would have been a great first social experiment if Ryan was also collecting data on its inhabitants. :Speaking of which, I can imagine Ryan making a deal with the Undertow's creator and giving him freedom to do what he wanted with his creation and people as long as he got his part of the bargain. That fusion of objectivism with altruism could have been born during or after Rapture's initial construction and without Ryan knowing or caring, since they respected the contract. If it was built on the edge of Persephone's trench, it would have been quite far enough from the city to not be bothered too. Considering that spot (above where Persephone was built later) is also where the Fontaine Futuristics HQ was built, would that mean said building stood on the former grounds of the Undertow? It would be interesting, storywise, one symbol of futuristic science replacing another. :To loose control of the city in less time than Rapture's downfall is completely understandable if Undertow was not large and cut from everything. You should think however which kind of people would inhabit it and their mentality. The same as Rapture (opportunities for the best and brightest) or something else? :Considering there's no proper date for the foundation of the FF HQ and Persephone, I don't think Undertow disappearing in 1951 would be contradictory with the games' timeline. Also it predates Lamb's disappearance from public opinion, so I'd say it even more possible, mostly if the Undertow was in some way representing her altruistic ideas. :With that I think you have good ideas to start from. I'm not the wiser when it comes to realist settings, but from a story point of view it seems to fit with what we know from the games. :Pauolo (talk) 21:00, May 28, 2015 (UTC) ::I'm not sure if this is what you're looking for, but we have a few blogs discussing possible natural resources that the people of Rapture likely had access to: User blog:Unownshipper/Metallurgists Wanted: Rapture's Natural Resources and User blog:Unownshipper/Flora and Fauna of Rapture. Of course, the people living in Undertow are closer to the trench through which the Sea Slugs emanate. Maybe they would have discovered ADAM before Brigid Tenenbaum did in 1952. Not for nothing, but aren't most colleges out already? ::Unownshipper (talk) 01:39, May 29, 2015 (UTC)